A cat normally has about 24 movable facial vibrissae, arrayed in rows of especially long whiskers on both sides of the nose. The roots of these whiskers extend about three times deeper into the cats skin than other hair follicles. The root of the whisker is a fibrous capsule that has a large amount of blood and nerve endings. Even an air current, or other change in environment, sends a message instantly to the nerve endings and on to the brain.

Whiskers also work like antennae, especially at night, in the dark, when cats are often active. They function as sensory devices, enabling the cat to navigate and hunt in nearly total darkness. When prowling in the dark, the cat's whiskers will fan out to the front and sides allowing it to scan the path in front of it, avoiding objects that might be in the way. When the whiskers are fully fanned, they enable the cat to measure the size of a small opening to determine if it is big enough for the cat's body to fit through. They may fan their whiskers to test the opening, then close the whiskers against their face and slip right through the opening. If the whiskers don't fit the opening, neither will the rest of the cat.

The long facial whiskers are crucial to a cat's hunting. In the dark, these facial whiskers allow the cat to gauge the size, shape, and position of it's prey, it's own position in relation to the prey, and where on the victim's body the cat should sink it's teeth.

The tufts on the back of the fore legs are carpal vibrissae. They enable the cat to complete the kill. How? A cat grabbing it's prey with its forepaws will receive data from those tufts, just like it does from it's whiskers. If the tufts receive no stimulation from the prey, the cat immediately knows that the prey is either very small or that it is holding the prey at the front or rear end. Why is this important? Simply because it is more difficult to kill prey when it is not securely held and prey held on only one end could defend itself. When the cat pounces on it's prey, both the tufts on the front legs and the whiskers are all working at the same time. The next time you see that lightening fast attack by your cat, you now know what is happening. It's not just chance that makes them such good night hunters, they are well designed for it!